Technical Field
The present disclosure relates to a method for accelerating the release of neurotransmitters, an optomedical device, and an optomedical system.
Background Art
It is a well-known fact that a variety of neurotransmitters secreted in the human brain greatly affect the human's mental state and physiological state. It is believed, for example, that the amount of secretion of neurotransmitters is closely related with the onset of such mental diseases as depression, panic disorder, and schizophrenia. Among neurotransmitters most influential on the mental state are those of monoamine type such as dopamine, serotonin, and noradrenaline.
For example, depression is caused by a decrease in secretion of dopamine and ADHD (attention-deficit-hyperactivity-disorder) is caused by an unsmooth transfer of dopamine resulting from anomaly in the neurotransmission pathway. Moreover, mental disease and sleep disorder are caused by the lack of secretion of serotonin.
There has been proposed in JP-T-2006-525039 a medical device which is intended to prevent the onset of sleep disorder by controlling the secretion of serotonin. Serotonin is secreted when the photoreceptor in the retina receives blue light. And the secretion of serotonin accelerates the secretion of melatonin to adjust the human sleep cycle. This knowledge is the base of the medical device disclosed in JP-T-2006-525039. In other words, the medical device accelerates the secretion of serotonin by directing light to the retina from the outside of the living body.
Unfortunately, the above-mentioned medical device has the disadvantage of needing comparatively intensive light beams directed to the retina for the secretion of neurotransmitters such as serotonin. This would cause an adverse effect on the human body.